Centre okays Bharatmala road through DNP areas

Jaisalmer: After a seven-year delay caused by strict regulations of Desert National Park (DNP), Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change has approved construction of the 137-km Jaisalmer-Myazlar-Sundra Bharatmala road in areas near the Indo-Pak border.
The approval was granted at a meeting of the standing committee of National Wildlife Board, chaired by Union minister Bhupendra Yadav on Oct 15. The initial estimated cost for the road project was Rs 390 crore. Following objections raised by DNP, National Highways Authority of India invested Rs 50 lakh in a survey conducted by Wildlife Institute of India, after which the cost rose to Rs 872 crore.
The approval allows for construction of a 100-km road from Jaisalmer to Myazlar and a 37-km road from Sundra in Barmer district to Myazlar. Additionally, the stalled work of installing mobile towers in DNP area can resume.
Lalu Singh Sodha, a resident of the border area of Pochina, said the Bharatmala road will boost tourism and also resolve long-standing problems faced by people in border areas. Currently, residents of DNP are deprived of basic amenities like electricity, water, and roads. Implementation of education, healthcare, and other govt schemes is also challenging due to restrictions in place for conserving DNP, he said.